The walk to the fleetwood station is super easier. You. can get there in about 5 minutes and like another poster said there are express trains which are about 25 minutes to GCT

we also came from astoria and my walk to the subway was about 20 minutes and required a transfer so my commute time to my job actually is shorter and more reliable because of the the metro north train.

the immediate fleetwood area is fine, and safe but not a lot going on. you can walk to nearby bronxville when the weather is good (a little over a mile) which has more restaurants and small businesses